For Fashion Week Asia, Indonesian label TOTON draws on traditional dress, ornamental techniques, and recycled textiles to examine his relationship with time.
For Indonesian designer Toton Januar, time is both a subject of fascination and a source of unease. The founder and creative director of Jakarta-based label TOTON, which he runs with his partner Haryo Balitar, explores these contradictions in the brand’s latest collection, presented on Day 1 of Fashion WeekFashion WeekA recurring event, held in cities such as Paris, Milan, New York, and London, where designers present upcoming collections to buyers, editors, and celebrities. Fashion weeks set the direction ofGo to Fashion Week Glossary Asia.
First shown in Jakarta earlier this year, the collection returns in an edited form, with the the crafts, cultural references, and techniques that have shaped the label’s work into a kaleidoscope of influences.
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“I think it’s because I see a lot of uncertainty in the world right now, politically, economically, and socially,” Januar says when asked why he chose this moment to bring these elements together. His approach to design begins with the concerns that occupy him beyond fashion, which he then translates into clothes. With this collection, time becomes a means of taking stock, even as the world keeps shifting around him.
The collection’s material choices reflect a similar interest in transformation. TOTON has worked with upcycled and recycled materials since 2016, placing a greater emphasis on them after the pandemic. At least half of each collection produced since then has consisted of reclaimed materials, including fibers recovered from factory fabric offcuts by a small Indonesian recycling company, which respins and reweaves them into new textiles. Old tablecloths and curtains also find new lives in the label’s hands.
On the runway, a breastplate is studded with colorful stones, its sturdy surface recalling Balinese wood carvings. Lace, pearls, gold metallic embroidery, and scalloped hems lend texture. Raffia-like skirts and dresses reinterpret baju rumbai, traditional grass skirts from Papua, into pieces that sway with every step. Broad shoulders and cinched waists provide structure and balance with the ornamental details.
Tiny violet flowers stitched onto garments trail like garlands behind the models. Pieces also recall the silhouettes, floral appliqués, and embroidery associated with the kebaya. For those accustomed to seeing Filipino dress reinterpreted through contemporary fashion, TOTON offers a compelling encounter with another Southeast Asian design tradition. And rather than treating heritage as a fixed reference point, TOTON approaches it as a living resource.
See the looks from TOTON’s collection below.
Photography by Excel Panlaque of KLIQ Inc.
Frequently Asked Questions
Toton Januar is an Indonesian fashion designer and the founder and creative director of Jakarta-based label TOTON, which he runs with his partner, Haryo Balitar.
The collection explores time, uncertainty, and the designer’s creative history, bringing together crafts, techniques, and cultural references from TOTON’s previous collections.
The collection features colorful stone embellishments, lace, pearls, gold metallic embroidery, scalloped hems, and raffia-like skirts.
Toton Januar wanted to reflect on his development as a designer, bringing together techniques and ideas from earlier collections while considering future directions for his work.
TOTON has worked with recycled and upcycled materials since 2016. At least 50 percent of each collection produced since then has used reclaimed materials, including recycled factory fabric offcuts, old tablecloths, and curtains.
